Faculty of Arts & Science
Digital Futures
Gunner Thongmeesang
LA Null
Animation
2026
1436 x 1080 pixels
00:02:45 [hh:mm:ss]
A stylized noir-inspired story of a detective confronting his past with a visual mix of 2D and 3D. It's a year-long animation thesis project.
“It's a 3-minute short animation featuring a mix of 2D and 3D digital elements in a 4:3 aspect ratio. The main core ideas within the work are relationship, work, legacy, and how they influence each other. The main reason for creating the animation is to push my ability to create an experimental and convincing story. I attempt to achieve this by leaning toward stylization rather than realism, as it opens up more opportunities to convey emotions and less restriction on the visuals. I push this to my extreme, relying on strong silhouettes and minimal colours with heavy emphasis on using black in order to make the colours and highlighted subjects associated with it stand out. Almost all of the shots and scenes were created in the Blender program. The specific materials were created so that the subjects reveal different colours with enough luminance, with different colours created from different materials, and the range of light. Some of the 2D character animations were created by drawing as an overlay in an animation program like Adobe Animate, while other shots were created as a flat plane within a 3D layout before rendering the shot. The reason behind mixing 2D and 3D aspects is the relationship between the two main characters. One maintains its own humanity while another lacks it. It's to create the contrast between their current situations. The animation and the aspect ratio are heavily influenced by the 1920s Noir detective genre, with the main character, inspired by Philip Marlowe, created by Raymond Chandler. It's an archetype in the crime fiction genre of a hardboiled detective serving justice. He was no one person, but a role. So I wanted to have a little spin on this idea. Since it was a necessary role to give to someone in order to uphold a society, it eventually became a myth, a legend, and, as a consequence, the character will eventually outlive everything he loved,for the sake of work and the city that needs him yet doesn't care about him. The inspiration of that aspect is similar to 007 agents, and the ongoing theory that James Bond is also a code name that goes along with the number, signifies their new identity and dedication to work. In my story, the main character befalls the same fate, through an unknown means, reunited with his old lover who ended in tragedy, but once again goes back to work. That is part of the reason why the main character has been made technically the same way as the settings, while the female character has been created in 2D. Her character design was also inspired by the 1920s rubber hose design, but differently, more lively than the main character. I attempt to make settings resemble the 1920s by using objects appropriate to that time, while also using some stylization of the black and white comic of how black is implemented, not just for shadows. I want my animation to evoke a sense of somberness. Sacrificing our "selves" for the better good takes a toll. Work can not provide personal fulfillment, no matter how much good it brings to the world. Though the story and emotions can also be up to interpretation, as the relationship of work and the sense of duty it brings can be weighted differently on an individual level.”
Work by
Gunner Thongmeesang aka. Gunoo3
Digital Future
“An animator, graphic designer, Thai student, and a fursuiter. I know traditional work, digital too, game design, animation, 3D design and printing, electric works, and fursuit making. Most I learn on...” [More]
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